Nikki arrived at the PRC in October 2019 at less than one year old after being confiscated as an illegal pet from a home in Charles County, Maryland. After being cared for by the Maryland zoo during the state’s legal holding period for confiscated animals, Nikki was transferred to the Primate Rescue Center where she can enjoy the comforts of sanctuary life. Because she was only 4 months old, her care plan had to be specialized to meet her age-specific needs. While Nikki was settling in and adapting to her new home, we began evaluating companionship opportunities for her. Initially, she was introduced to Saidah Barbary macaque. However, Nikki found Saidah to be a little too big and intimidating. Our next option was with another monkey who had also spent time around other baby monkeys – Dewey rhesus macaque. Dewey and his companion Bubbles long-tailed macaque received Nikki into their home with open arms and eagerly began grooming, playing, and cuddling with her. With Dewey and Bubbles as her surrogate parents, Nikki now has the comfort and love needed to mend her tiny heart after being taken from her real monkey mother and sold into the pet trade when she was just a few days old. Nikki is very energetic but also loves to have a nice nap wrapped up inside her favorite blankets. She likes to play with toys that rattle and make noise, and her favorite foods are mangos and popcorn.
Scientists discover new endangered primate species, with only 260 left
Scientists have discovered a new primate species in the jungles of Myanmar -- and it's already at risk of extinction.
No Grumpy Old Men in the World of Chimps
Older male chimps follow a pattern that researchers also see in humans, preferring to have positive relationships with a few good friends.
Endangered Brazilian monkeys get a bridge to themselves
The overpass juts from a forest over a four-lane highway in a rural area outside Rio de Janeiro. It’s meant for a very special sort of pedestrian: golden lion tamarins, small orange primates that for decades have been at risk of extinction.
Male baboons with female friends live longer
Drawing on 35 years of data, a new study of more than 540 baboons in Amboseli National Park in Kenya finds that male baboons that have close female friends have higher rates of survival than those who don't.
Chimpanzees in volatile habitats evolved to behave more flexibly
As the consequences of climate change bear down on all species today, flexible behavior in chimpanzees may be more necessary than ever and their past may be their best defense in an uncertain future.
Like humans, chimpanzees can suffer for life if orphaned before adulthood
Our study shows that a mother's presence and support throughout the prolonged childhood years was also likely a trait in the last common ancestor that humans shared with chimpanzees six to eight million years ago. This trait is likely to have been fundamental in shaping both chimpanzee and human evolution".
Scientists see signs of chimpanzees being able to adapt to climate change
Chimps in more variable conditions exhibit more and different behaviors.
‘The monkeys were here before us’: Once revered, macaques are now taking over a city in Thailand
For the Buddhist faithful in Lobpuri, feeding them was a meritorious deed – but the monkey population has soared in recent years, driving away visitors and decimating parts of the local economy.
Differing diets of bonobo groups may offer insights into how culture is created
Human societies developed food preferences based on a blend of what was available and what the group decided it liked most. Those predilections were then passed along as part of the set of socially learned behaviors, values, knowledge, and customs that make up culture. Besides humans, many other social animals are believed to exhibit forms of culture in various ways, too.
Primate Vocalizations Are Much More Than Gibberish
Nonhuman primates clearly do more than just screech meaningless sounds at each other, but what are the limits of their communication?
